Mornings With Jesus 2016: 14-Day PlanSample

A lot is written about fear. How it cripples us and twists truth and causes destruction.

I’m coming to terms with a fear of mine I’ve only recently been able to name. It’s the fear of not doing enough. Its relatives are perfectionism and impatience and humanism.

This fear focuses on what I think I need to be doing and fools me into fighting for the wrong priorities. It clogs the space in my heart reserved for Jesus, the perfect Love who can drive it out.

This fear strikes hard when I feel hurried and blinds me to my God-given life of offering grace and compassion. But instead of presenting itself honestly as the fear of not doing enough, it points the finger at people, the more important “interrupters.” This fear is the real interrupter, and it pushes me to wound people.

Jesus does not give me the thumbs-up if I snap for more time to put holy insights on the page. He is not filled with pride if I smile close-lipped, to send someone the message that I have more valuable work to do. The fear of not doing enough does not fix its eyes on Jesus. It is focused on me and my perceived strengths and shortcomings, as if the Lord’s life in me depends on what I bring to the table.

When I feel the rush of ambition, I must realize that trait can be a greatest strength/greatest weakness thing. If my fear of not accomplishing the task supersedes Jesus’s desire for me to care for people, then I am destructive and trying to make myself bigger.

That fact is sobering, humbling, convicting. But I can thank Jesus daily for being perfect Love, Who is more than enough. —Erin Keeley Marshall

FAITH STEP: Ask Jesus to banish your fears and bathe you with His priority to love.